Artículos y publicaciones
ENERO 2025
The opening of Hospital San Miguel (November 2021) brought the possibility of molecular diagnostics to the village of Puerto el Carmen, in the Putumayo, Amazonia region of Ecuador on the border with Colombia. The hospital serves more than fifty communities along the Putumayo and San Miguel rivers, in which dengue virus (DENV) and other arboviruses are likely widespread but the epidemiology of acute febrile illness is poorly understood. Access to these communities through medical outreach creates a unique opportunity and imperative to characterize emerging and endemic pathogens in the region.
Jacob Van de Ende, MD, MSc is the director of the Infectious Disease department at Hospital San Miguel. Paul Cardenas, MD, MSc, MS, DIC, PhD is a professor at the College of Biological and Environmental Sciences at Universidad San Francisco de Quito. As part of the CREID Pilot Program, they are mentored by Dr. Jesse Waggoner, Emory University and Dr. Josefina Coloma, University of California, Berkeley.
In 2023, a DENV outbreak spread through Putumayo. Monitoring of such an outbreak relies on molecular diagnostics, but reliable RNA extraction and storage is difficult and expensive in Ecuador. Therefore, widespread molecular testing for RNA viruses is not feasible in these communities. For this reason, Drs. Van de Ende and Cardenas proposed to evaluate RNA Extraction and Storage (RNAES) technology, developed by A2CARES/CREID member Dr. Waggoner, as an affordable and locally sustainable solution for RNA extraction, stabilization, storage, and transport between study sites.
The Pilot study is divided into two aims. In Aim 1, RNAES will be compared to a commercial RNA extraction kit using a biobank of characterized clinical samples available at Hospital San Miguel. RNA will be tested in real-time RT-PCRs and whole virus genome sequencing protocols. In Aim 2, their teams will evaluate RNAES feasibility and RNA stability with protocol implementation in remote Amazon communities. Based on initial experience, current protocols will be iterated to optimize workflow in these remote locations.
The CREID Network Pilot Research Program supports, trains, and mentors the next generation of emerging infectious disease researchers. This program is administered by the CREID Coordinating Center (NIAID award #U01AI151378) which helps develop capacity for emerging infectious disease research around the world through the performance of scientific research projects. For more information about the program, please visit the CREID website.
ENERO 2025
¡Primera publicación científica!
Estamos orgullosos de anunciar la primera publicación científica del Hospital San Miguel en Emerging Infectious Disease, la revista científica de los CDC. Esta publicación trata sobre los cuatro serotipos de dengue que encontramos aquí en Putumayo el año pasado. Esta es una información muy importante, ya que la reinfección por dengue con otro serotipo puede tener un impacto clínico importante en el paciente. Esta publicación es el resultado de una gran colaboración entre el Hospital San Miguel, la Universidad San Francisco de Quito y la Universidad de California Berkeley.
Puedes leer el artículo a través del siguiente enlace.
ENERO 2024
El Hospital San Miguel ahora es un sitio oficial de investigación de A2CARES en Ecuador
El Hospital San Miguel ha sido aceptado oficialmente como un nuevo sitio de investigación de A2CARES en Ecuador. A2CARES es uno de los diez centros de investigación que conforman la red CREID (Centros de Investigación en Enfermedades Infecciosas Emergentes), dedicados a abordar áreas críticas de investigación en enfermedades infecciosas emergentes y desarrollar experiencia científica y capacidad de investigación regional. Este reconocimiento como sede extranjera supone un gran paso adelante en la profesionalización del diagnóstico y la investigación científica dentro de nuestro hospital.
